2010 All Comeback Team Part I

By Zach Steinhorn

It’s no secret that drafting proven players while their
value is low is one of the keys to building a championship team. Every season,
there are plenty of guys who, despite boasting solid big league track records,
are undervalued on draft day due to either health concerns or poor performance
the previous year. Owners should never be afraid to take a chance on these
players so long as the price is right. Let’s take a look at the first half of
the 2010 Fantasy Comeback Team.

C Geovany Soto Cubs

One of the biggest busts of 2009, Soto redeemed himself in a
huge way this season, looking a lot more like the player who took home Rookie
of the Year honors in ’08. The Cubs backstop got off to a red hot start,
batting .340 in April, and finished 2010 with a very solid line of .280-17-53.
Although his streaky ways can be frustrating, Soto is a safe bet for quality
power numbers at a thin position and is arguably a top-5 fantasy catcher
heading into 2011. In other words, don’t expect to draft him at a bargain this
time around.

1B Aubrey Huff Giants

You just never know what you’re going to get from Huff from
year to year. Maybe all he needed was the excitement of playing for a
postseason-contending team. Maybe all he needed was the motivation of playing
for a new contract. Whatever the reason, Huff is enjoying one of his finest
seasons to date. The first-year Giant sports a career-best .382 on-base
percentage through 153 games and has reached the 25-home run mark for just the
second time in the last six seasons. Having gone undrafted in the majority of mixed
leagues following an awful 2009 campaign, Huff has easily outperformed a number
of mid-round first basemen, including Derrek Lee, Lance Berkman and Carlos
Pena. Go figure. Considering Huff’s inconsistent track record, be careful not
to overvalue him on draft day 2011.

2B Rickie Weeks Brewers

Health, not talent, has always been the question with Weeks,
but in 2010 it hasn’t been an issue at all. Although Weeks doesn’t quite fit
under the “established track record” category, he had shown flashes of stardom
before. The problem was that he had yet to play more than 129 games in a
season. Well, the 28-year-old second baseman is finally injury-free and proving
exactly why he was such a highly regarded prospect, batting .270 with 28
homers, 82 RBIs, 109 runs scored and 11 steals through 156 games. Look, there’s
little doubt the guy can put up strong numbers, but the number that will always
matter most for Weeks is the one under the column labeled “G”.

SS Jose Reyes Mets

Entering drafts this past spring, nobody epitomized the term
“high-risk high-reward” much like Reyes, the former top-5 overall pick who was
limited to just 36 games in 2009 due to a myriad of leg injuries. Spending a
fifth round pick on the Mets’ speedster would either prove to be a huge steal
(no pun intended) or a huge waste. Turns out that fifth round is about where
Reyes will go next year, and I’d be more than glad to take him in that spot.
While the days of 60-plus steals are probably over, Jose remains a safe bet for
30-35 steals to go along with double-digit homers and a solid average…and
that’s a conservative projection. Sure, he remains a health risk, but how many
other shortstops can offer that type of production?

3B Adrian Beltre Red Sox

What a wise decision by Beltre to sign a one-year deal with
Boston coming off the worst season of his career both performance-wise and
health-wise. With the Red Sox, the veteran third baseman would get the chance
to restore his stock in hopes of inking a lucrative long-term contract at year’s
end. The plan has worked to perfection. Aided by a far superior supporting
lineup than the one he had in Seattle, Beltre has surpassed the 100-RBI plateau
for the first time since 2004. Oh yeah, then there’s the 28 homers and gaudy
.323 average through 153 games. Beltre’s a career .275 hitter, so a
considerable drop-off in the average department can be expected in 2011. That
said, aside from 2009, Adrian has been one of the more consistent options at
the hot corner over the past decade. For owners willing to wait until the
mid-rounds to draft their third baseman, Beltre will make for a fine choice.

Absolutely, on that “Comeback pitcher” comment. Dickey really impressed me, and even though Mike Pelfrey had a crazy bad August, I think he deserves some recognition for pulling his stuff together and ending on a good note. I mean come on, that record before the All Star Game? Pelf was on a roll. Im hoping to see good things from him next season.

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